England are weighing up an official complaint regarding the Snicko technology used in the Ashes series after a significant error gave Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey a crucial lifeline on the opening day of the third Test at Centurion.
Controversial Reprieve Sparks Fury
Carey, who finished the day on 106 not out in Australia's total of 326 for eight, was on 72 when England fast bowler Josh Tongue appealed for a caught behind. The on-field umpire gave it not out, prompting England to review.
The third umpire, Chris Gaffeney, examined the evidence, which included a spike on the Snicko audio waveform. However, the spike appeared before the ball passed the bat on the visual replay, contradicting the usual sequence. This anomaly led Gaffeney to conclude there was insufficient evidence to overturn the original decision.
Operator Error Admitted
The company behind the technology, BBG Sports, later admitted to a mistake. In a statement, they said "the Snicko operator at the time must have selected the incorrect stump mic for audio processing" and took full responsibility.
The revelation added salt to England's wounds, especially as Carey himself admitted he felt a nick. "I thought there was a bit of a feather or some sort of noise when it passed the bat," said the centurion, adding he would have reviewed had he been given out.
Formal Complaint on the Cards
England's bowling coach, David Saker, expressed the team's frustration and indicated a formal complaint to match referee Jeff Crowe was likely. "The boys were pretty confident he hit it," Saker stated. "I think the calibration of the Snicko is out quite a bit and that has probably been the case for the series."
Saker emphasised the decision's importance, coming with Australia at 245 for six, and questioned the technology's reliability. "In this day and age you’d think the technology is good enough to pick things up like that. We shouldn’t be talking about this after a day’s play, it should be better than that."
The incident has highlighted ongoing concerns about the consistency of the decision review system in this fiercely contested Ashes series.
